PM closing in on Brexit deal

THERESA May yesterday brushed aside Tory leadership plotting and promised she would deliver the Brexit deal that Britain voted for.
In a defiant message to Boris Johnson and other Eurosceptic critics in the ranks of her squabbling party, the Prime Minister insisted she will stay in her job “for the long term” and will not be forced out of Downing Street.

And signalling growing optimism that an agreement with Brussels is within her grasp, one of her senior officials yesterday declared: “We are closing in on a deal.”

Mrs May, left, fired her broadside at Conservative Brexit rebels in her first public remarks since returning from her walking holiday in Switzerland.

Speculation about her future has raged over the summer months following attacks on her Johnson and other Brexiteers.

Speaking in a television interview in Cape Town yesterday at the start of a three-day visit to Africa, the Prime Minister said: “I am here for the long term because I want to deliver for the British people.

“That is delivering on the Brexit vote, doing that in a way that protects jobs and livelihoods, maintains the UK, means no hard border between Northern Ireland and Ireland.

“But also deliver for the British people on the concerns that they have.”

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Mrs May also dismissed speculation about a possible leadership challenge by Mr Johnson when she was questioned by journalists during her flight to South Africa on Monday evening.

She said: “I’ve been asked before if it’s my intention to lead the Conservative Party into the next election and I have answered that question before – I’m in this for the long term.

“What I’m focused on is doing what the British people want.

“The British people voted for us to leave the EU and I, and my Government, will be delivering on that.”

She also rejected suggestions that her position was threatened by a surge in Eurosceptic voters joining local Tory associations in the hope of wrecking her Chequers blueprint for a customs deal and backing a Brexiteer candidate in a future party leadership contest.

She said party chiefs had been working from the start of the year to raise membership and had achieved “a steady increase”.

Theresa May danced with students and staff at I.D. Mkize Secondary School in Cape Town (Image: PA)

What I’m focused on is doing what the British people want

Theresa May

Some of her allies fear Mr Johnson, the former foreign secretary, could be preparing a leadership challenge following his resignation from the Cabinet in protest at the Brexit proposal agreed by ministers at her Chequers country retreat.

But Mrs May simply said: “I’ve said before that I’m in this for the long term.”

She also rejected warnings that she could face a hostile reception from grassroots members at the Tory conference in Birmingham in October.

She added: “I will be going to the conference with important messages about what we as a Government are doing – not just in relation to Brexit issues and delivering a good deal, but on the domestic agenda.”

As the Prime Minister began her visit to South Africa, a senior Government source hailed the progress made in the Brexit talks with Brussels.

Ahead of fresh talks between the two sides reconvening in Brussels today, the official said: “We are closing on a deal.

“A significant amount of the withdrawal agreement is now agreed and we remain confident we can make progress by October.

“But, as we have set out, ‘no deal’ planning is taking place and the purpose of that is to make sure that the UK continues to thrive and succeed outside the EU in whatever scenario.”

‘We will crack down on people trafficking’

A fresh drive to tackle ruthless people-traffickers – and to help the survivors of slavery rebuild their lives will today be unveiled by Theresa May.

The measures will be aimed at reducing illegal and unsafe migration into Europe from West Africa.

The Prime Minister will announce the moves in Nigeria, on the second day of her three-day trip to Africa. Nigeria is the fifth-largest country of origin for victims of modern slavery in Britain.

Men, women and children tricked into coming to Europe soon face the risk of abuse, trauma, prostitution, forced labour and even death.

Ahead of her visit, Mrs May said: “Modern slavery is one of the greatest human rights abuses of our time and the UK is a world leader in making it an international mission to end this heinous crime.

“Today we are stepping up our partnership with Nigerian authorities to find traffickers and bring them to justice. “We are also launching a new project with France to strengthen border co-operation to prevent trafficking along key migration routes .”

She also said: “It’s vital we support the victims who have suffered trauma and are at high risk of being re-trafficked.

THE Prime Minister yesterday paid tribute to anti-apartheid hero Nelson Mandela as she visited the South African jail where he spent 18 of his 27 years in prison. In a rare honour accorded only to VIPs, Theresa May was given a key to open the cell on Robben Island, where Mr Mandela – who went on to become South Africa’s president – was held with other anti-apartheid campaigners until 1982.

She wrote in the guest book: “His legacy lives on in the hopes and dreams of young people here in South Africa and around the world.”

Earlier, Mrs May paid another tribute to Mr Mandela, who was released in 1990, hailing his “walk to freedom” for a just society.